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After remaining inactive in the field for six years, Asia Energy has recently started a two-year survey in and around its proposed Phulbari coal mining area, which prompted the national committee on protecting oil, gas, mineral resources, power and port to start organising resistance against the survey.

Bangladesh's tumble to defeat was clear from the end of the third day of the second Test against West Indies at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna. The West Indies had taken a first innings lead of 177 and still had five wickets in hand, with run-machine Shivnarine Chanderpaul batting on 109. On the fourth day yesterday however, Bangladesh and Shakib Al Hasan in particular learnt a harsh lesson in Test cricket after the left-hander did splendidly both with the ball and with the bat to give the home side a glimmer of hope, which he himself extinguished at the fag end of the day.

Bangladesh didn't receive even a single tonne of rice from India to contain the spiralling food prices between 2010 and 2011, despite its acceptance of India's terms and conditions, Food Minister Muhammad Abdur Razzaque said yesterday.

The Ashura, commemorating the martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Hossain (RA), grandson of Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH), will be observed in the country today with religious fervour and mourning over the tragedy.

There is no alternative to creating opportunities for the people with disabilities to have them participate actively in national development and poverty alleviation programmes, said discussant at a roundtable yesterday.

The government has drafted a new set of guidelines for the appointment of High Court judges, specifying the academic qualifications a candidate requires. However, none of the prior recommendations of the Law Commission were adopted in the draft.

Defiant Egyptian judges hit back at President Mohamed Morsi yesterday demanding he reverse a decree giving himself sweeping powers that put him beyond judicial oversight, after more clashes between police and protesters.

The government will speed up the trial of the August 21 grenade attack case soon after finishing the trial of the sensational 10-truck arms haul case, Home Minister Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir said yesterday.

Forty- and 50-somethings in the throes of a mid-life crisis should probably stop blaming a troubled marriage, their kid's college costs, or technology that makes them feel about as modern as papyrus compared to their younger colleagues.

Portugal withdrew the bulk of its police officers from East Timor yesterday as international forces wind up a 13-year mission in Asia's youngest nation, where thousands have died in political bloodshed.

Editorial

The martyrdom of Imam Husain (RA) remains a telling episode in the history of Islam. It is so because what transpired on the tenth day of Muharram in Karbala was tragedy on an unprecedented scale, to a point where Muslims across the world look upon the battle between Imam Husain's forces and his enemies as a defining moment in a war between truth and falsehood. On the surface, the battle in Karbala may have been a struggle for power, and yet it is the deeper dimensions of the Karbala tragedy that are recalled on Ashura.

After restoration of democracy in early 1991, it was hoped that with the Jatiya Sangsad functioning, democracy will gain from strength to strength in the coming years. Unfortunately, the last two decades were marked by a largely dysfunctional JS only due to its endless boycott by the opposition of the time on one excuse or another. They have thus made JS boycott into a culture.

Sports

It could have been a fantastic day for champion all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan but just one bad shot spoiled his party and saw Bangladesh end the fourth day's play in a pathetic state at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium yesterday. After achieving a historic feat with the ball the left-hander, along with Nasir Hossain, restored sanity to the Bangladesh batting after the top order's madness to take the match into the fifth day, which at one stage looked a distant hope for Bangladesh.

Shakib Al Hasan was the hero of the day. But Shakib Al Hasan also broke the hearts of millions in the country yesterday after the end of the fourth day's play at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium. After taking four wickets the left-hander hit 97; an outstanding effort by an all-rounder. But the stats do not always speak the whole truth. Obviously Shakib once again showed his calibre but one can easily question whether he fully understands the meaning of responsibility; otherwise how can a player like him play a shot like he played in the last over of the day.

Tino Best's early departure on the first day of the second Test raised concerns in the West Indian dressing room. The fact that he didn't come to bat for the visitors in the first innings made it seem like the pacer was out of the game.

Centuries from Nadif Chowdhury and Dhiman Ghosh put their respective teams, Chittagong and Rangpur, in strong positions yesterday as both these sides headed towards victory against Dhaka and Barisal respectively.

Defending champions Abahani notched up their second straight win to go joint top of the Grameenphone Bangladesh Premier League along with Muktijoddha Sangsad when they handed a 2-1 defeat on Arambagh Krira Sangha at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday. A 19th minute own goal from Arambagh defender Moniruzzaman Mamun gave Abahani the lead before Cameroonian forward Yoko Samnick made it 2-0 in the 24th minute with an acrobatic side volley. Idris Kasirye, the Ghanaian veteran of Arambagh, reduced the margin from the spot in the 29th minute to make the rest of the encounter an interesting one.

Skipper Alastair Cook continued to torment India with yet another gritty batting display while Kevin Pietersen returned to form with an unbeaten half-century to give England a slight advantage in the second Test here Saturday.

Top seeds Thomas Fancutt of Australia and Ma Ka Man Carina of Hong Kong lived up to their billing by claiming double crowns in the Focal Point 26th Bangladesh ITF Junior Tennis Championships which concluded at the National Tennis Complex in Ramna yesterday. Biplob Ram of Bangladesh was the saving grace for the hosts as he won the boys' doubles crown pairing with Fancutt. Biplob, the top-ranked Bangladeshi player, had earlier made it to the third round in the boys' singles. Jamil Bhuiyan was the best performer for Bangladesh, reaching the quarterfinals. The top two female participants had seen their run end in the second round of the championships.

The Bangladesh national women's kabaddi team, under the banner of Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation XI, will participate in a six-team kabaddi competition titled Bangabandhu Invitational Women's Kabaddi Tournament which starts in Kolkata on November 28.

Young Men's Club of Fakirerpul defeated T&T Club of Motijheel 2-1 in their Popular Life Insurance Senior Division Football League match at the Birshreshtha Shaheed Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur yesterday.

Bangladesh Golf Federation (BGF) is hoping to send their golfers to the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil where golf has been one of the events, expressed organisers of golf in a meet the press event at the Kurmitola Golf Club yesterday. Bangladesh won both the individual and team event gold in the South Asian Games in 2010, which inspired the organisers to think of sending the team, provided the players qualify or get wild card.

Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho cannot understand why his sides consistently fail to deliver in penalty shootouts after revealing it took extraordinary circumstances for him to shake off his bad luck in his only final shootout win in 2008.

Business

Economic integration among states in South and South West Asia offers a huge potential for sustainable development in the region, said a report of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) launched in Dhaka yesterday.

A supporter of Ganatantrik Parishad, an influential panel supported by Annisul Huq, was manhandled when he was going to cast his vote in the biennial election to the country's apex trade body, FBCCI, in Motijheel yesterday.

The Dhaka office of KOTRA, commercial section of the South Korean embassy, will hold a seminar and one-on-one business meetings between companies of Korea, Bangladesh and South Asian countries on solar power, solar irrigation and renewable energy sector.

India's largest and oldest apex trade body, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), will arrange a business event, India Show, in Dhaka on December 3 to enhance and deepen the country's economic engagement with Bangladesh.

A non-profit organisation based in Singapore, FTTH Council Asia-Pacific, will organise a workshop in Dhaka today on telecommunication infrastructure to educate its stakeholders on the opportunities and benefits of Fiber To The Home (FTTH) solutions.

Economic optimism is now official. The year ahead could be “a very good one for the American economy,” Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, declared on Tuesday. If he turns out to be right, these words could probably be applied to the world economy as a whole.

Sushasoner Jonno Nagorik (Sujan), a civil society platform working for good governance, yesterday urged all citizens and organisations believing in the ideology of the Liberation War to make the national convention against communalism, slated for December 8, successful.

The country's women must build resistance at every neighbourhood and locality against Jamaat-Shibir as women will be adversely affected the most if communal and militant forces rise in Bangladesh, said discussants at a roundtable yesterday.

Activists of pro-Awami League Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) of Rajshahi University (RU) unit yesterday beat up an activist of pro-Jamaat Islami Chhatra Shibir after dragging him out from his classroom on the university campus.

With three days to go before the triennial election to Chittagong unit Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) on November 29, rival candidates are raising allegations against pro-Awami League Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad (Swachip) of obstructing their campaigning.

Participants of a three-day workshop on leadership development programme were awarded certificates at a ceremony at Canadian High Commissioner's official residence in the capital yesterday, says a press release.

A team of archaeologists accompanied by high officials from Dhaka and Patuakhali yesterday examined the site of the historic boat, found under the sand in Kuakata beach on June 7 this year, to chalk out a technical strategy for salvation of the boat by February 2013.

The interns of Barisal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH) will resume their duty today as they have decided to postpone till December 15 their indefinite strike in protest against assaulting two doctors by attendants of a patient who died at the hospital Wednesday morning.

At least 30 people were injured, three of them by bullets, as an incumbent union parishad chairman's men attacked the supporters of the former chairman in Raipura upazila of Narsingdi yesterday morning.

Detective Branch (DB) of police arrested three suspected robbers at Kaizuri Shreepur village in Sadar upazila early yesterday. The arrestees are Abdus Salam, 45, Anisur Rahman, 37 and Md Shutka, 42, of Kaizuri and Jalalpur areas respectively. Of them, Salam is the 'ringleader' of an inter-district robber gang. Md Mostafa Harun, officer in-charge of DB, said on secret information, a team raided a residence and arrested the trio when they were taking preparation to commit a robbery.

Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) seized huge Indian contraband sarees, medicines and imitation jewelry sets worth Tk 1.20 crore at Rampur in Amrakhali area under Benapole Port Police Station yesterday. BGB Benapole Camp Commander Rafiqul Islam said, on secret information, a team raided the area and seized the goods at around 12:00pm. However, the smugglers fled the scene, sensing the presence of the BGB men. The seized goods were handed over to the custom godown, said Rafiqul.

A gang of masked criminals stabbed a trader dead in front of Parveen Public School in the district town on Friday night. The deceased, Siraj Pathan, had a cosmetic business at Chinabazar in the town. Police said the gang waylaid a motorbike riding Siraj and his friend Nazrul near the school at Diarbhita at about 10:30pm. Later, the gang stabbed Siraj and Nazrul indiscriminately, leaving them critically injured. They were whisked off to Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital where Siraj died after sometime. The reason behind the attack could not be known immediately, said police.

Police arrested a local leader of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami at BRAC office in Pachbibi upazila on Friday evening. The arrestee, Abul Bashar, is Pachbibi pourosava unit Jamaat Amir and former chairman of Mohammadpur Union Parishad. Acting on a tip-off, a team of Pachbibi police raided the area in the evening and arrested Bashar. Police said they arrested Bashar following a case filed for attack on the law enforcers and vandalising vehicles by Jamaat-Shibir activists on November 5.

Teachers, students and staffs of Khulna University (KU) yesterday celebrated the 21st KU Day amid enthusiasm and festivity. On the occasion, a daylong free blood group test began on the campus in the morning. A colourful procession was also brought out at 10:00am from the campus which paraded different streets of the city. Vice Chancellor Fayequzzaman joined the procession. The university was established in 1987 but its academic session began on August 31, 1991.

Police arrested three alleged criminals along with five bombs from Shankarpur area in the town yesterday. The arrestees are as Roni Babu, Lotas and Sumon. Acting on a tip-off, a team of Kotwali police raided Roni's house at around 6:00am and arrested him with the bombs. On his confessional statement, the law enforcers later arrested Lotas and Sumon from their houses in the area .

Nearly 200 nations gather in Doha from tomorrow for a new round of climate talks as a rush of reports warn extreme weather events like superstorm Sandy may become commonplace if mitigation efforts fail.

Arts & Entertainment

“Shutarang”, a solo photography exhibition featuring images by Salma Ahmed, is now on at Drik Gallery in Dhanmondi. The photographs highlight some deeply personal moments in the life of the recently deceased eminent film director Subhash Dutta.

Language veteran and renowned cultural personality from Magura, Khan Ziaul Haque has been selected for the Naren Biswas Award 2012 for his outstanding innings in the cultural arena. The award has been instituted by Kanthashilan, a renowned recital organisation in Dhaka which accords recognition to a cultural personality annually.

Rejaul Karim by nature is a serious painter. He is not attracted by the physical appearance of objects. The cognitive nature of his mind takes him deep inside a thing in order to dig out the meaning from its core. His paintings are evocative and thoughtful.

Times are changing. Way back in the 1990s, any film producer would have found it impossible to bring former Bollywood heartthrobs Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla to share screen space, as late director Yash Chopra did in the 1990s when he made the hit film “Dil To Pagal Hai”.

Larry Hagman, who shot to worldwide fame for his portrayal of the oilman villain J.R. Ewing in the US television series "Dallas," has died at the age of 81 after losing a battle with cancer, his family said Saturday.

Theatre Art Unit's critically acclaimed production “Court Martial” saw its 200th staging on November 23 at the National Theatre Hall, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. The landmark show was held as part of the 10-day International Theatre Festival organised by the troupe to mark its 20th anniversary.

The late autumn festival Nabanna Utshab-1419 was celebrated by the Dalit Matua Community on Wednesday at Natun Bazar area in Barisal city with a call to officially observe the occasion as a national cultural festival and public holiday.

OP-ED

Last week, US President Obama made what many term a historic trip to Myanmar. Fresh from presidential elections in his country, in which he won a second term, he surprised all when he went merrily off on an Asian tour. His first stop was Thailand, followed by a 6-hour stopover in Yangoon, Myanmar. He then went to Cambodia to attend a meeting of leaders of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean). But the world was bewildered because Obama's priorities seem to be misplaced.

More than 160 Palestinians and 5 Israelis are dead, and as the smoke clears over Gaza, the Israelis will not be more secure and Palestinians' hopes for self-determination remain dashed. It is time for a significant re-evaluation of the American policies that have contributed to this morass.

The 10th day of Muharram is a red-letter day in our history. Known as Ashoura, it is the anniversary of the inimitable sacrifice which Hazrat Imam Hussain (RA), the youngest grandson of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), made, along with 72 others, to uphold the true teachings of Islam befitting "the Prince of Martyrs."

The political, social, economic landscape of India was vastly different at the time when Yousuf Ali Chowdhury, popularly known as Mohon Mia, was born in an ancient zaminder family of East Bengal. The year of his birth, 1905, coincided with East Bengal briefly being accorded the status of a separate province.

The recent scandal implicating the ex-CIA Director David Petraeus and his biographer Paula Broadwell in an extramarital relationship has created intense media hype. Apart from the fact that the affair contains all the ingredients of a James Bond-style thriller -- sex, espionage, probable national security threat, possible secret document leaks -- it raises serious and long-term questions about the private lives of high profile public figures.